Fallujah – Xenotaph (Review)

Fallujah - XenotaphThis is the fifth album from US death metal band Fallujah.

Fallujah have a storied list of releases at this point, (The Flesh PrevailsDreamlessUndying LightEmpyrean), all worth getting your teeth into. After the slight dip in quality that was Undying Light, Fallujah returned very strong with Empyrean. All of which means I have been interested to see what the 42-minute Xenotaph brings us this time around. Continue reading “Fallujah – Xenotaph (Review)”

Rivers of Nihil – Rivers of Nihil (Review)

Rivers of Nihil - Rivers of NihilThis is the fifth album from US death metal band Rivers of Nihil.

Ah, the eponymously titled album, so far into a band’s career always gives me pause. Does it mark a career-best record, a reinvention, or a lack of identity? The album even carries a song called Rivers of Nihil. What’s going on here then? Which way will the band go with this? Continue reading “Rivers of Nihil – Rivers of Nihil (Review)”

Ominous Ruin – Requiem (Review)

Ominous Ruin - RequiemThis is the second album from US death metallers Ominous Ruin.

Following on from 2021’s enjoyable Amidst Voices That Echo in Stone, Ominous Ruin have returned, now with a new vocalist. Requiem brings us 40 minutes of technical/brutal death metal, and it’s pretty damn good. Continue reading “Ominous Ruin – Requiem (Review)”

Changeling – Changeling (Review)

Changeling - ChangelingThis is the debut album from German progressive death metal band Changeling.

Changeling is brought to us by current/ex-members of Alkaloid, Belphegor, Defeated Sanity, Fear Factory, Obscura, Vipassi, and Virvum. It’s supported by an army of guests, who perform everything from guest solos, vocals, and choirs, to cello, flutes, horns, piano, tuba, violins, viola, and much, much more. The music combines progressive and technical death metal, with jazz fusion, progressive rock, and world music. It’s a lot, and it’s all packed into 60 minutes of compelling material. Continue reading “Changeling – Changeling (Review)”

Cytotoxin – Biographyte (Review)

Cytotoxin - BiographyteThis is the fifth album from German death metallers Cytotoxin.

2020’s Nuklearth was a very good album, so it’s great to have Cytotoxin back once more. Containing 48 minutes of new material, Biographyte offers a radioactive feast of death metal for us to savour and enjoy. It’s the band’s longest album, but fear not, Cytotoxin know what they’re doing. Continue reading “Cytotoxin – Biographyte (Review)”

Tómarúm – Beyond Obsidian Euphoria (Review)

Tómarúm - Beyond Obsidian EuphoriaThis is the second album from US black/death metal band Tómarúm.

2022’s Ash in Realms of Stone Icons was a one of the best of the year, so anticipation has been high for the new one from Tómarúm. Will Beyond Obsidian Euphoria‘s 69 minutes have the same impact as its predecessor? Continue reading “Tómarúm – Beyond Obsidian Euphoria (Review)”

Allegaeon – The Ossuary Lens (Review)

Allegaeon - The Ossuary LensThis is the seventh album from US death metallers Allegaeon.

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed all of the Allegaeon albums I’ve heard, (2016’s Proponent for Sentience, 2019’s Apoptosis, and 2022’s Damnum), and each has been better than the last. Now Allegaeon are back with the 46-minute The Ossuary Lens, (their shortest album so far), and have changed singer, with their their original vocalist returning to the fold. Let’s see what they have to offer us this time around. Continue reading “Allegaeon – The Ossuary Lens (Review)”

Celestial Scourge – Observers of the Inevitable (Review)

Celestial Scourge - Observers of the InevitableCelestial Scourge are a Norwegian death metal band and this is their debut album.

Featuring members of Blood Red Throne and Deception, Celestial Scourge are here to destroy. Observers of the Inevitable contains 30 minutes of brutal technical death metal, and it’s a raging mass of controlled savagery. Continue reading “Celestial Scourge – Observers of the Inevitable (Review)”

Retromorphosis – Psalmus Mortis (Review)

Retromorphosis - Psalmus MortisThis is the debut album from Swedish death metallers Retromorphosis.

Well, this was an instantly enticing proposition. It’s death metal brought to us by ex-members of Spawn of Possession, (four out of five of Retromorphosis’ members), and an ex-member of Decrepit Birth, which is enough to get anyone’s notice. However, when you look at their collective history though, you realise just how much experience they bring to the table – Alkaloid, Blood Red Throne, Deeds of Flesh, Defeated Sanity, Eschaton, Obscura, Necrophagist, Visceral Bleeding, and many others. What a list! Considering this, expectations are high for Psalmus Mortis, perhaps unfairly so. Continue reading “Retromorphosis – Psalmus Mortis (Review)”

Obscura – A Sonication (Review)

Obscura - A SonicationObscura are a death metal band from Germany and this is their seventh album.

2018’s Diluvium was a feast of modern technicality, while 2021’s A Valediction offered a melodic refresh of the Obscura sound that so many had come to love. So what does A Sonication bring us in 2025? Continue reading “Obscura – A Sonication (Review)”